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OVER 200,000 PEOPLE attended the funeral of Pope Francis today – with 50,000 people packed into St Peter’s Square and others watching on screens set up in nearby squares and streets.
Dozens of world leaders were in Rome to attend the funeral, including US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President Michael D Higgins and Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
A group that included poor and marginalised people were among the last to pay their respects to the late pope before his private burial.
Ahead of the funeral, Trump and Zelenskyy held what was described as a ‘productive’ meeting at St Peter’s Basilica.
Updates by Lauren Boland and Jane Moore with additional reporting by Daragh Brophy and Cliodhna Travers, and Diarmuid Pepper in Rome.
Good morning. Lauren Boland with you here.
Since before the sun rose on Rome this morning, Vatican City has been filling up with thousands of mourners ahead of the funeral of Pope Francis.
After several days of lying in state, Francis’s coffin was sealed in a private ceremony in St Peter’s Basilica yesterday evening.
His funeral is due to begin at 10am local time (9am Irish time). It will be followed by a procession at 10.45am to carry his coffin to Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica for 12pm.
My colleague Diarmuid Pepper took a flight to Rome to bring us all the news surrounding the funeral from the ground.
He’s been up since the early hours and is watching from the colonnade of St Peter’s Basilica, where accredited media have been escorted to.
Cardinals will be closest, foreign dignitaries on the far end @thejournal_ie pic.twitter.com/kQ0zT4HgGM
— Diarmuid Pepper (@Diarmuid_9) April 26, 2025
Journalists from around the world rushed to travel to the Vatican over the last few days to report on Francis’s funeral.
Dozens of world leaders are attending the funeral this morning.
Among them will be President Michael D. Higgins, Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris.
“It is an honour to represent the Government and people of Ireland at the funeral of His Holiness Pope Francis, and to reflect on and appreciate the remarkable achievements of his life,” the Taoiseach said ahead of the funeral.
“He had a deep commitment to service. He was a man of great humility who lived his life with an unwavering commitment to the principles of compassion, peace, and human dignity, providing an example to all.”
Martin described Francis as a “voice for the marginalised, the poor, and the migrants”.
“He truly lived the Gospel in his actions and in the example he set. Pope Francis showed leadership in the church. He pursued his vision of a Catholic Church that is open, compassionate, and does not shy away from the challenges the world faces.”
He offered his sympathies and condolences to Francis’s “family and friends, to the College of Cardinals and to all those who mourn him, a much loved person and respected leader”.
Diarmuid has a prime view of the proceedings from the press area to the side of St Peter’s Square.
The rosary started a few minutes ago and the square is now starting to fill up as invited world leaders and senior religious figures take their seats.
Rosary has started for Pope Francis as we prepare for his funeral @thejournal_ie pic.twitter.com/ogNJFxd5Mf
— Diarmuid Pepper (@Diarmuid_9) April 26, 2025
US President Donald Trump is also due to attend. Air Force One touched down at Leonardo da Vinci International airport in Fiumicino last night carrying the American president and First Lady Melania Trump.
AFP is reporting that a meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today is potentially on the cards.
A senior official told AFP on condition of anonymity that “the two presidents could meet”.
Zelenskyy has been due to attend the funeral, though there has been some speculation over whether he might give it a miss after cutting short a trip to South Africa to return to Ukraine in the wake of significant Russian missile strikes targeting Kyiv and other cities.
If Trump and Zelenskyy do meet today, it would be their first time to come together since their tumultuous press conference at the White House in February.
Former US President Joe Biden and former First Lady Dr Jill Biden have arrived for the funeral.
Biden was the US’s second-ever Catholic president. The first was John F. Kennedy in the 1960s.
World leaders have been sat in alphabetical order by their country, except for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Argentinian President Javier Milei, who have specially designated seats. Francis, the first pope from Latin America, was born in the Argentinean capital Buenos Aires.
At home in Ireland, Bishop Fintan Monahan, the Bishop of Killaloe, has shared the text of a homily he has delivered paying tribute to Pope Francis.
The bishop recounted a story from his first meeting with Francis nearly a decade ago.
“When I first met Francis in September of 2016, at what is termed the ‘Baby Bishop’s Course’ in Rome, I was somewhat taken aback when he asked me to pray for him,” Bishop Monahan said.
“I told him I would, and asked him would he kindly do the same for me also. He nodded in agreement.
“I’m not sure with his broken English if he had a clue what I said, but for my part I certainly kept the agreement in offering a decade of the rosary every night for his intentions. I don’t know if Francis kept his side of the deal, but if you’re tuned in from above Pope Francis, an occasional hail Mary or two would be appreciated!”
The bishop described Francis as a “disrupter, stirrer, radical and reformer” who “brought us back to the message of Jesus with new and fresh eyes”.
“Ironically he was also a conservative, in the best sense of the word, intent on preserving the distilled essence of the Christian message.”
Pope Francis’s coffin is now being carried in a slow procession through the basilica to where it will sit in St Peter’s Square for the funeral.
The pallbearers have now rested Francis’s coffin at the centre of the Mass in St Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has published the order of service on its website in Italian, Latin and English.
The official booklet including Latin translation is available on the Vatican website, while the BBC has published the English sections of the text.
The entrance antiphon – a chant sang to open the Mass – was played as Pope Francis’s coffin was brought out to the Square. It starts: “Eternal rest grant to him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.”
The congregation is now being led in the Penitential Act (the confession of sins).
The funeral mass is being presided over by 91-year-old Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the college of cardinals.
Joseph Ratzinger, who later became Pope Benedict, held the same role back in 2005 and presided over the funeral of John Paul II.
The mass is being concelebrated by patriarchs and cardinals wearing their white damask mitre.
The first reading was selected from the Acts of the Apostles and is being read in English by Kielce Gussie, a journalist from Vatican News.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy drew applause from the crowd in St Peter’s Square when he arrived for Pope Francis’s funeral.
He is one of at least 130 foreign dignitaries who are attending the funeral, including around 50 heads of state and 10 reigning monarchs.
The second reading was from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians.
The Gospel is now being read. Is it taken from the Bible’s Book of John, 21: 15-19.
Delivering his homily, the Dean of the College of Cardinals thanked mourners for their attendance, giving special thanks to the world leaders who are present.
“The final image we have of him, which will remain etched in our memory, is from Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis, despite his serious illness, wanted to give us his blessing,” said Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.
“With our prayers, we entrust the soul of our beloved pontiff to God.”
“Despite his frailty and suffering towards the end, Pope Francis chose to follow his path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life,” the Cardinal says.
“He followed in the footsteps of his Lord, the Good Shepherd who loved his sheep to the point of giving his life for them,” he said.
“He did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God.”
The Cardinal says that the Pope’s decision to take the name Francis “immediately appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of St Francis of Assisi”.
He says that Francis “maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality, immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church”.
“He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalised.
“He was a Pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone.”
The Cardinal recalls Pope Francis’s attention to the difficulties faced by asylum seekers and refugees, saying his “gestures and exhortations in favour of refugees and displaced persons” were “countless”.
“His insistence on working on behalf of the poor was constant. It is significant that Pope Francis’ first journey was to Lampedusa, an island that symbolises the tragedy of emigration, with thousands of people drowning at sea,” he said.
“In the same vein was his trip to Lesbos, together with the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Archbishop of Athens, as well as the celebration of a Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico.”
He says that Pope Francis sought to remind people that “we all belong to the same human family”.
“Faced with the raging wars of recent years, with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction, Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions,” the Cardinal says.
“War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals and schools. War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone.
“‘Build bridges, not walls’ was an exhortation he repeated many times.”
In his homily, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re says: “Build bridges, not walls” was an exhortation he repeated many times by Francis, and his service of faith as Successor of the Apostle Peter always was linked to the service of humanity in all its dimensions. @thejournal_ie pic.twitter.com/aQT6XINKO1
— Diarmuid Pepper (@Diarmuid_9) April 26, 2025
Bringing his homily to a close, the Cardinal says: “Pope Francis used to conclude his speeches and meetings by saying, ‘Do not forget to pray for me’.”
“Dear Pope Francis, we now ask you to pray for us,” he says.
“May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this Basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope.”
Earlier, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived for the funeral, he received a spontaneous applause from the crowd.
A spokesperson for Zelenskyy has said he and US President Donal dTrump met briefly in Rome before the funeral.
“The meeting took place and is already over,” Sergiy Nykyforov told journalists without elaborating.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is not in attendance. He is the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant.
Russia is instead being represented by its Culture MInister Olga Lyubimova.
Communion is now being given to the congregation.
Our reporter Diarmuid says there are hundreds of Ministers of the Eucharist bringing the rite to the thousands in attendance.
— Diarmuid Pepper (@Diarmuid_9) April 26, 2025
Pope Francis’s coffin is now being blessed for a final time.
The Mass is due to end shortly and we’ll see the procession begin to his final resting place in a basilica outside of the Vatican.
During the offering of the sign of peace, Emmanuel Macron gave Trump a firm handshake.
The French president has form when it comes to longer-than-average handshakes with Trump.
Among those in Rome for the funeral is Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.
Assange, who from 2010 published hundreds of thousands of confidential US documents on the whistleblowing website, was released from a high-security British prison in June last year after a 13-year legal battle for freedom.
“Now Julian is free, we have all come to Rome to express our family’s gratitude for the Pope’s support during Julian’s persecution,” his wife Stella Assange said.
“Our children and I had the honor of meeting Pope Francis in June 2023 to discuss how to free Julian from Belmarsh prison. Francis wrote to Julian in prison and even proposed to grant him asylum at the Vatican.”
"Now Julian is free, we have all come to Rome to express our family’s gratitude for the Pope’s support during Julian’s persecution. Our children and I had the honor of meeting Pope Francis in June 2023 to discuss how to free Julian from Belmarsh prison. Francis wrote to Julian in… pic.twitter.com/1B4iNp31Is
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) April 26, 2025
When you look at the photos from St Peter’s Square this morning, it’s striking the sheer number of people who are gathered.
On his way to Italy yesterday, our reporter Diarmuid asked some of his fellow travellers why they were making the journey.
He met a group of young people on board the early Dublin-Rome flight who had booked their trip to see the canonisation of the Church’s first millennial saint, the teenager Carlo Acutis, which had already been scheduled coincidentally but was postponed after the Pope’s death.
Diarmuid also spoke to Father Michael Toomey, who was likewise due to come to Rome as a guide for young Irish people attending the canonisation.
“While the group is saddened the canonisation isn’t happening, they’re still humbled and honoured to be here for Pope Francis’s funeral,” Toomey said.
A group of people from marginalised communities will be the last to pay tribute to Francis today as his coffin is brought up the steps of the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica.
Francis was known for being a pope to care for the most vulnerable members of society.
Our reporter Diarmuid writes:
It’s in a rather unfashionable area of Rome – on a taxi journey to the basilica on the night before Francis’ funeral, a taxi driver warned me to be especially wary of pickpockets. Perhaps this is one of the reasons Francis chose to be buried here and indeed a group of poor and needy people will give him his final send off.
The group will include poor people, homeless, prisoners, migrants and transgender individuals, who will pay their last tribute and express their gratitude to Francis.
The Vatican said that for many of them, he was like a “father”.
Holding a white rose, they will be the last to bid farewell to Francis.
“The poor hold a privileged place in God’s heart,” and therefore “also in the heart and teachings of the Holy Father, who chose the name Francis so as never to forget them,” said the Vatican.
A group of poor and needy people will give him his final send off.
— Diarmuid Pepper (@Diarmuid_9) April 26, 2025
The group will include poor people, homeless, prisoners, migrants and transgender individuals, who will pay their last tribute and express their gratitude to Francis. pic.twitter.com/Y0hnUIGz61
In his requests for his funeral, Francis sought to tone down some of the grandeur seen at previous papal funerals.
His coffin is relatively simple and was kept low, rather than raised up, while he was lying in state, and his tomb will be marked with just one word: Franciscus (the Latin for Francis).
The funeral cortège is going to move solemnly from St Peter’s Square to Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.
It will travel 6km, crossing Rome’s Tiber River and passing well-known Rome landmarks, incluidng the Colosseum.
Our reporter Diarmuid captured the moment when Pope Francis’s coffin was taken back inside St Peter’s Basilica before the procession to Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica.
And that’s it, Pope Francis will now go to his final resting place, his beloved Santa Maria Maggiore. There, a group of poor and homeless people, as well as refugees and transgender individuals, will line the steps with white roses. @thejournal_ie pic.twitter.com/eO1SPKekc8
— Diarmuid Pepper (@Diarmuid_9) April 26, 2025
Crowds have gathered on the streets of Rome to pay respects to Pope Francis as his coffin is transported through the city.
The casket is being driven through the Italian capital in a white vehicle, similar to the open top popemobile.
Continuous applause and cheers can be heard from those who have gathered along the route.
The procession has crossed Rome’s Tiber River and passed the Colosseum.
As we reported earlier, the procession is heading to Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, where Francis will be buried.
Tánaiste Simon Harris has said it was “an honour and a privilege” to attend Pope Francis’s funeral as part of Ireland’s national delegation.
President Michael D Higgins led the delegation, with Taoiseach Micheál Martin also in attendance.
“Today, as we laid him to rest, we joined with people from every corner of the globe in mourning a remarkable spiritual leader who left an indelible mark on our world,” Harris said.
“The sadness we have all felt at his passing has been eased somewhat by the widespread celebration of his life and his achievements that we have witnessed since his death.
People have gathered here in Rome to reflect on a Papacy defined by compassion, humility, and an unwavering commitment to the most vulnerable among us. He inspired millions, beyond the Catholic Church, with his humility and love for the less fortunate.
Harris said the scale of the global response to Francis’s death and “the unprecedented attendance at his funeral” speaks to the profound impact he had during his time as leader of the Catholic Church.
“He was a moral voice on the world stage, advocating tirelessly for peace, for climate justice, for the poor and the displaced,” he continued.
“In Ireland, he will forever hold a special place in our hearts for his historic visit in 2018. That visit was a moment of reflection and dialogue, of healing and hope, and it resonated deeply with people of all faiths and none.
“Pope Francis challenged us all to be better—to care more, to judge less, to lead with kindness. His legacy will continue to inspire generations to come. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam uasal.”
The coffin of Pope Francis has arrived at Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, where he will be buried.
Crowds gathered outside Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica applauded as pallbearers carried Francis’s coffin to the doors of the basilica.
The coffin has now been carried inside, preceded by a procession of cardinals.
The cardinal leading the procession is Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, who has served as the papal almoner – the Vatican official responsible for charitable activities – since 2013.
Dublin-born Cardinal Kevin Farrell is alongside him.
The Pope’s coffin was received by a “group of poor and needy people” as it arrived at Rome’s Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.
The Holy See said on Thursday that a “group of poor and needy people” would be present on the steps leading to Saint Mary Major to pay their last respects to Francis before he is entombed.
The burial is being held in private.
People will be able to visit Francis’s tomb from tomorrow morning.
And with that ends the public access to the funeral proceedings.
Here are some of the final photographs taken before Pope Francis’s burial.
Our reporter Diarmuid has been speaking to some people who gathered to attend the funeral of Pope Francis.
Marie Heraughty originally travelled to Rome for the Canonisation of Carlos Acutis, which was due to take place tomorrow, but was postponed upon the death of the pontiff.
“It was emotional, but it was above all, a wonderful moment to be able to say goodbye and thank you for Pope Francis, for what he has done for all of us,” Heraughty says.
Like so many, Marie Heraughty was over for originally for the Canonisation of Carlos Acutis. She said he even came through for her group today, when a prayer to him fixed the big screen that was in the blink at St Peter’s. @thejournal_ie pic.twitter.com/8KQCGJsotJ
— Diarmuid Pepper (@Diarmuid_9) April 26, 2025
It appears the US President has already left.
Shortly after the coffin of Pope Francis arrived at Rome’s Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrived to board Air Force One at Leonardo da Vinci International Airport in Rome.
Trump held a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy inside St Peter’s Basilica before the pope’s funeral, which the US described as “productive”.
Here is a clip of the funeral procession passing the Colosseum in Rome, met with applause from crowds of people lining the route.
Elsewhere around the world, Catholics and other mourners have been remembering Pope Francis.
In Francis’s native Buenos Aires in Argentina, large numbers attended Mass and watched the funeral on screens.
Across the world in southeast Asia, a Requiem Mass was held Timor Leste.
At a Scottish Premiership match in Dundee, players observed a minute’s silence in memory of the Pope.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is making the most of the gathering of world leaders.
Having met Trump earlier in the Vatican, he’s now speaking with French President Emmanuel Macron.
Efforts have been ongoing to strike a ceasefire deal between Ukraine and Russia but there are still large gaps between the two side’s position that need to be resolved.
Happening now: @ZelenskyyUa and @EmmanuelMacron having a tête-à-tête about further peace efforts. pic.twitter.com/YvmIVLaF5e
— Andrii Sybiha 🇺🇦 (@andrii_sybiha) April 26, 2025
On that note – the White House Deputy Chief of Staff has shared this video of the brief meeting with Zelenskyy and Trump earlier, where Macron also greeted the pair.
Behind Scenes, Vatican City—President Trump sat down to meet privately with Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine this morning in St. Peter’s Basilica… pic.twitter.com/zzC78AgbNh
— Dan Scavino (@Scavino47) April 26, 2025
The Vatican has said that around 150,000 people lined the streets of Rome to watch as the Pope’s coffin was transported across the city.
The Pope’s funeral was a massive international occasion today, but it’s not the last of the of the events to mark his passing.
The funeral is the first of nine days of official Vatican mourning for Pope Francis.
Masses will be held in his honour on each of the coming days.
The Vatican has shared images from Pope Francis’s entombment inside Santa Maria Maggiore, which wasn’t open to the public.
Back at St Peter’s Square, the major set-up to accommodate thousands of mourners is already being tidied away. Pope Francis has been laid to rest and will be remembered at Masses over the next week — and soon after, cardinals will gather in the Vatican to elect the next pontiff.
With that, we’re wrapping up this liveblog. Thank you for joining us throughout the day.
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